Lesson#01

RETURN TO SYLLABUS
JUDGES
LESSON #01
INTRODUCTION

A TITLE FOR THE BOOK:

THE SPIRAL OF CYCLES IN GOD’S PLAN

THE NAME OF THE BOOK:

THE TITLE OF THE BOOK COMES FROM THE POSITIONAL TITLE OF THE MANY MEN AND ONE WOMAN WHO SERVED AS JUDGES DURING THE TIME BETWEEN THE DEATH OF JOSHUA AND THE CROWNING OF KING SAUL.
THE HEBREW NAME FOR THE BOOK IS, "SHOPHETIM" WHICH MEANS = RULER, DELIVERER, SAVIOR.

THE HISTORICAL BACKGROUND:

FOR OUR PURPOSES IN STUDYING THIS BOOK, THE BOOK OF JUDGES OCCURS IN THE PERIOD OF TIME BETWEEN THE DEATH OF JOSHUA AND ISRAEL’S FIRST KING, SAUL (1424 BC TO 1095 BC). THE PERIOD OF THE JUDGES COVERS 329 YEARS OF TIME. THE BOOK OF RUTH AND PART OF 1SAMUEL OCCUR IN THE PERIOD OF THE JUDGES.

HOWEVER, MORE TECHNICALLY, THE ACTUAL PERIOD OF THE JUDGES BEGAN IN 1491 BC, WITH MOSES AND JOSHUA, WHO ACTED AS JUDGES, AND EXTENDS UNTIL THE DEATH OF SAMUEL DURING THE REIGN OF KING SAUL IN ABOUT 1060 BC. (ABOUT 450 YEARS)
JOSHUA LED THE ISRAELITES INTO THE PROMISED LAND AFTER THE DEATH OF MOSES. HE LED THE ISRAELITES IN A MILITARY CAMPAIGN AGAINST THE CANAANITES THAT LIVED IN THE LAND. (THE BOOK OF JOSHUA) ACCORDING TO GOD’S COMMAND THE ISRAELITES WERE TO KILL ALL INHABITANTS OF THE LAND BECAUSE THEY WERE MORALLY AND SPIRITUALLY CORRUPT.(DEU 7:1-4) HOWEVER, THEY DISOBEYED AND ALLOWED SOME OF THE CANAANITES TO LIVE.

WE WILL SEE THE RESULTS OF THIS DISOBEDIENCE IN THE BOOK OF JUDGES.

ONCE THE ISRAELITE TRIBES CONQUERED THE LAND, THEY WERE SUPPOSED TO POSSESS THE LAND, CARE FOR THE LAND, AND INCREASE THEIR POPULATION UNDER THE BLESSINGS AND GUIDANCE OF GOD.

WE WILL SEE THIS STRUGGLE FROM TRIBE TO TRIBE AS THEY TRY TO POSSESS THE LAND WITHOUT GOD.
GOD TOLD THE ISRAELITES THAT TO KEEP THE LAND WAS CONDITIONAL ON THEIR OBEDIENCE TO GOD. (DEU 4)

WHEN JOSHUA DIED, THERE WAS NO ONE CENTRAL LEADER LIKE JOSHUA OR MOSES TO CONTINUE OVERSEEING ALL TWELVE TRIBES. THEY HAD NO KING. GOD WAS TO BE THEIR LEADER. HOWEVER, EACH TRIBE ACTED AS THOUGH THEY WERE ON THEIR OWN.

A CHRONOLOGICAL TIME LINE OF THE BOOK OF JUDGES:

SCRIPTURE AND CYCLE	THE EVENTS AND THE JUDGES	THE ENEMY AND YEARS OF OPPRESSION	YEARS OF RULE
JDG 2:8	JOSHUA DIES 1424 BC
JDG 2:6-10	THE RULE OF ELDERS WHO OUTLIVED JOSHUA 1424 – 1405 BC		ABOUT 24 YEARS
CYCLE #1 JDG 2:16-19 JDG 3:1-11	OTHNIEL, CALEB’S NEPHEW 1400 – 1360 BC	MESOPOTAMIANS 8 YEARS	40 YEARS
CYCLE #2 JDG 3:12-31	EHUD AND SHAMGAR 1360 – 1280 BC	MOABITES AND PHILISTINES 18 YEARS	80 YEARS
CYCLE #3 JDG 4:1 – 5:31	DEBORAH AND BARAK 1280 – 1240 BC	CANAANITES 20 YEARS	40 YEARS
CYCLE #4 JDG 6:1 – 8:32	GIDEON 1240 – 1200 BC	MIDIANITES 7 YEARS	40 YEARS
CYCLE #5 JDG 8:33 – 9:57	ABIMELECH 1200 – 1197 BC	CIVIL WAR ? YEARS	3 YEARS
JDG 10:1-2	TOLA 1197 – 1174 BC	CIVIL WAR ? YEARS	23 YEARS
JDG 10:3-5	JAIR 1174 – 1152 BC	CIVIL WAR ? YEARS	22 YEARS

1SAM 4:15-18

ELI, A JUDGE AND A HIGH PRIEST
1162 – 1142 BC

CYCLE #6 JDG 10:6 – 12:7	JEPHTHAH 1152 – 1146 BC	AMMONITES	6 YEARS
JDG 12:8-10	IBZAN 1146 – 1139 BC	AMMONITES 18 YEARS	7 YEARS
JDG 12:11-12	ELON 1139 – 1129 BC	PHILISTINES	10 YEARS
JDG 12:13-15	ABDON 1129 – 1121 BC	PHILISTINES	8 YEARS
CYCLE #7 JDG 13: 1 – 16:31	SAMSON 1121 – 1101 BC	PHILISTINES 40 YEARS	20 YEARS

1SAM 7:13

SAMUEL, A JUDGE, A PROPHET, AND A PRIEST
1101 – 1095 BC

ABOUT 6 YEARS

WHO WROTE THE BOOK OF JUDGES?

THE AUTHOR IS UNKNOWN BUT THE MOST ACCEPTED CANDIDATE IS SAMUEL WHO SERVED BOTH AS A JUDGE AND A PROPHET.
JEWISH TRADITION ATTRIBUTES THE BOOK TO SAMUEL.

TO WHOM WAS THE BOOK WRITTEN?

IT WAS WRITTEN TO THE JEWS.

WHEN AND WHERE WAS THE BOOK WRITTEN?

THE AUTHOR WROTE THE BOOK DURING THE TIME WHEN ISRAEL HAD A KING. IF SAMUEL WROTE THE BOOK, IT WAS WRITTEN DURING THE REIGN OF ISRAEL’S FIRST KING, KING SAUL (1095 – 1055 BC).

JDG 18:31 AND JDG 20:27 INDICATE THAT THE BOOK WAS WRITTEN AFTER THE ARK OF THE COVENANT WAS REMOVED FROM SHILOH (1SAM 4:3-11)
JDG 17:6 AND JDG 18:1 INDICATE THAT THE BOOK WAS WRITTEN DURING THE TIME ISRAEL HAD A KING.
JDG 1:21 INDICATES THAT THE BOOK WAS WRITTEN BEFORE 1004 BC WHEN DAVID CONQUERED THE CITY OF JERUSALEM AND EXPELLED THE JEBUSITES.(2SAM 5:5-9)

THE LOCATION OF THE BOOK IS THE PROMISED LAND OF ISRAEL.

THE PURPOSE OF THE BOOK. WHY DID THE AUTHOR WRITE THE BOOK?

EVEN THOUGH THE BOOK GIVES US HISTORICAL DETAILS OF THE TIME, THAT WAS NOT ITS PURPOSE.

THE BOOK IS NOT WRITTEN GIVING AN ACCURATE HISTORICAL RECORD. OF ALL OF THE NATION’S HISTORY DURING THIS TIME PERIOD. INSTEAD IT JUMPS AROUND GEOGRAPHICALLY.
THE BOOK IS NOT A COMPLETE PICTURE OF THE NATION OF ISRAEL, BUT ONLY A COMPOSITE OF SPECIFIC EXAMPLES IN A FEW GEOGRAPHICAL AREAS.

THROUGH THE BOOK, GOD IS GIVING US A PHILOSOPHY OF HISTORY THAT DEMANDS THE ANSWER TO SEVERAL QUESTIONS:

WHAT IS IT THAT MAKES A NATION OR A PEOPLE GREAT, BLESSED BY GOD, PROSPEROUS, AND PROGRESSING?
WHAT IS IT THAT MAKES A NATION OR A PEOPLE POOR, FORSAKEN BY GOD, OVERRUN BY ENEMIES, AND IN HOPELESS DECLINE?

TO ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS WE MUST SEE THE BOOK OF JUDGES IN ITS SPIRITUAL CONTEXT:

FROM THE VERY BEGINNING OF CREATION, GOD WANTED A PEOPLE WHO WOULD LOVE HIM, TRUST HIM, AND FOLLOW HIM IN OBEDIENCE. MAN IN HIS REBELLION INSISTED ON DOING THINGS HIS OWN WAY. BUT GOD IS PATIENT. IT IS AS THOUGH GOD SAYS TO MAN, "OK, TRY IT YOUR OWN WAY. THEN WE’LL TALK!" FOR EXAMPLE, CONSIDER MAN’S HISTORY FROM THE BEGINNING:

ADAM AND EVE	GOD GAVE THEM ONE LAW TO OBEY AND THEY FAILED. THEN GOD GAVE MAN A PERIOD OF GRACE WHERE MAN MUST LIVE WITH THE CONSEQUENCES OF THAT ORIGINAL SIN, BUT MAN WOULD SUCCEED IF HE TRUSTED GOD.
CAIN AND ABEL	IN A PERIOD OF GRACE, GOD ALLOWED MAN TO BE GOVERNED BY HIS OWN CONSCIENCE. HOWEVER, MAN’S CONSCIENCE DID NOT RESTRAIN EVIL.
NOAH	MAN FAILED TO LET GOD WORK THROUGH HIS CONSCIENCE, AND MAN BECAME MORE AND MORE EVIL. GOD BROUGHT JUDGMENT THROUGH THE FLOOD AND ESTABLISHED THE PRINCIPLE OF NATIONAL GOVERNMENT AND CAPITAL PUNISHMENT TO ESTABLISH LAW AND REIGN IN EVIL.
ABRAHAM	NATIONAL GOVERNMENTS DID NOT APPLY GOD’S LAWS BUT ONLY SOUGHT SELF-SERVING POWER. THEREFORE, GOD, IN GRACE, CALLED MAN TO A PERSONAL FAITH RELATIONSHIP WITH HIS CREATOR AS A MEANS OF LIMITING PERSONAL EVIL.
MOSES	ALL MEN DID NOT SEEK THAT PERSONAL FAITH RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD, SO GOD GAVE MAN AN EXTERNAL STANDARD OF LAW BY WHICH TO LIVE.
THE BOOK OF JUDGES	IN THIS TIME OF THE MOSAIC LAW, MAN DID NOT TAKE THE LAW SERIOUSLY. IN REALITY, THE SPIRITUAL CLIMATE OF THE TIME WAS THAT MAN DID THAT WHICH SEEMED RIGHT IN HIS OWN EYES. (JDG 17:6)

NOTICE THAT GOD INITIATED THE PRINCIPLE OF CONSCIENCE IN THE TIME OF CAIN AND ABEL DURING A PERIOD OF GRACE. GOD DID NOT INITIATE MAN LIVING BY HIS CONSCIENCE IN THE PERIOD OF LAW DURING THE BOOK OF JUDGES.
READ PRO 14:34

WE WILL SEE THIS IMPORTANT BIBLICAL TRUTH BORNE OUT OVER AND OVER IN THE BOOK OF JUDGES.

THE KEY VERSE IN THE BOOK OF JUDGES:

JDG 17:6

OUR PURPOSE FOR THE STUDY OF THE BOOK OF JUDGES:

OUR PURPOSE IN STUDYING THIS BOOK IS TWO FOLD:

TO SEE AND UNDERSTAND THE LENGTHS TO WHICH MAN WILL GO TO LIVE ACCORDING TO HIS OWN FLESH NATURE.
TO SEE AND UNDERSTAND THE MERCIFUL AND PATIENT NATURE OF GOD WHO ALLOWS MAN TO DO HIS OWN WILL AND YET RESCUES MAN BEFORE THE SITUATION BECOMES TOTALLY HOPELESS.

TO OBSERVE THESE TWO MAJOR POINTS IN OUR STUDY WE WILL FOLLOW SEVEN CYCLES IN THE BOOK OF JUDGES.

CYCLES IN THE BOOK OF JUDGES:

GOD IS A GOD OF ORDER. THROUGH HISTORY FROM THE VERY BEGINNING, GOD HAS WORKED IN CYCLES AND CONTINUES TO DO SO.
FOR EXAMPLE THE TABLE ABOVE FOLLOWS THE CYCLE OF PERIODS OF LAW ALTERNATING WITH PERIODS OF GRACE.
IN THE BOOK OF JUDGES, THERE IS A CYCLICAL PATTERN WITH FIVE POINTS THAT IS REPEATED SEVEN TIMES.

REMEMBER THAT THE NUMBER, SEVEN, IS GOD’S SYMBOLIC NUMBER FOR COMPLETENESS OR PERFECTION.

THE FIVE POINTS OF THE CYCLE REPEATED SEVEN TIMES:

=1= SIN

=2= SERVITUDE

=3= SUPPLICATION

=4= SALVATION

=5= SILENCE

THE SEVEN REPETITIONS OF THE CYCLE:

THE SEVEN CYCLES IN THE BOOK OF JUDGES APPEAR IN THE CHRONOLOGICAL TIME LINE ABOVE.
THE SEVEN CYCLES ARE A DOWNWARD SPIRAL OF DETERIORATION NOT ONLY IN THE NATION BUT IN THE JUDGES THEMSELVES.

WITH EACH CYCLE, THE NATION DETERIORATES MORE.

THE JUDGE DELIVERERS:

WHEN THE PEOPLE CRIED TO GOD FOR HELP, GOD WOULD SEND A DELIVERER, CALLED A JUDGE.

ALL THE JUDGES WERE LIMITED IN THEIR HUMAN ABILITIES. EACH HAD A MAJOR DEFECT OR HANDICAP THAT MADE HIM OR HER RELY ON GOD FOR STRENGTH.
NONE OF THE JUDGES WERE NATIONAL LEADERS BUT ONLY LOCAL LEADERS, SOME MORE COLORFUL AND PROMINENT THAN OTHERS.

THE THEME IN THE BOOK OF JUDGES:

THE KEY THEME IN THIS BOOK IS "SYNCRETISM".

WHAT DOES SYNCRETISM MEAN?

THE ATTEMPTED RECONCILIATION OR UNION OF DIFFERENT OR OPPOSING PRINCIPLES IN RELIGION.

OUTLINE OF THE BOOK OF JUDGES:

=A= INTRODUCTION TO THE ERA OF THE JUDGES (JDG 1-2)

=1= THE CONDITION OF THE NATION AFTER JOSHUA DIES (JDG 1)
=2= GOD REVEALS THE CYCLES OF THE JUDGES (JDG 2)

=B= THE ERA OF THE JUDGES (JDG 3-16)

=1= THE FIRST APOSTASY:

CONQUERED BY MESOPOTAMIA AND DELIVERED THROUGH OTHNIEL.

=2= THE SECOND APOSTASY:

CONQUERED BY THE MOABITES AND THE PHILISTINES AND DELIVERED THROUGH EHUD AND SHAMGAR (JDG 3:12-31)

=3= THE THIRD APOSTASY:

CONQUERED BY KING JABIN, KING OF CANAAN AND DELIVERED THROUGH DEBORAH AND BARAK (JDG 4:1-5:31)

=4= THE FOURTH APOSTASY:

CONQUERED BY MIDIAN AND DELIVERED THROUGH GIDEON (JDG 6:1-8:32)

=5= THE FIFTH APOSTASY:

CIVIL WAR AND DELIVERED THROUGH ABIMELECH, TOLA, AND JAIR (JDG 8:33-10:5)

-=6= THE SIXTH APOSTASY:

CONQUERED BY THE PHILISTINES AND THE AMMONITES AND DELIVERED THROUGH JEPHTHAH, IBZAN, ELON, AND ABDON (JDG 10:6- 12:15)

=7= THE SEVENTH APOSTASY:

CONQUERED BY THE PHILISTINES AND DELIVERED PARTIALLY THROUGH SAMSON (JDG 13-16)

=C= THE RESULTS OF THE ERA OF THE JUDGES (JDG 17-21)

=1= RELIGIOUS APOSTASY (THE TEMPLE) (JDG 17-18)
=2= MORAL AWFULNESS (THE HOME) (JDG 19)
=3= POLITICAL ANARCHY (THE STATE) (JDG 20-21)

THE SOURCES OF MATERIAL FOR OUR STUDY:

THRU THE BIBLE COMMENTARY SERIES: HISTORY OF ISRAEL: JOSHUA AND JUDGES BY J. VERNON MC GEE.

CHRONOLOGY OF THE OLD TESTAMENT: A RETURN TO BASICS BY FLOYD NOLEN JONES (THE SOURCE FOR ALL DATES)

ON THE EVE OF ADAM: GOD’S ANCIENT PLAN FOR LUCIFER’S DEFEAT BY DR. J. R. CHURCH

WHEN CRITICS ASK BY NORMAN GEISLER AND THOMAS HOWE

BAKER THEOLOGICAL DICTIONARY OF THE BIBLE; WALTER A. ELWELL, EDITOR

THE BIBLE KNOWLEDGE COMMENTARY: OLD TESTAMENT BY JOHN F. WALVOORD AND ROY B. ZUCK

A SURVEY OF ISRAEL’S HISTORY BY LEON WOOD

THE COMPACT SURVEY OF THE BIBLE BY JOHN BALCHIN

NELSON’S COMPLETE BOOK OF BIBLE MAPS AND CHARTS; THOMAS NELSON, INC.
A VARIETY OF MISC. NOTES

HOMEWORK
JUDGES 1
THIS IS A SELF-STUDY. PLEASE DO NOT SEND HOMEWORK ANSWERS TO THE TEACHER FOR CORRECTION.

PREPARATION FOR JDG 1:1-36

READ JDG 1:1-36

WHAT WAS JUDAH’S FAILURE?
WHAT ONE WORD WOULD YOU SAY DESCRIBES THE TWELVE TRIBES AT THAT TIME?
HOW DID THE TWELVE TRIBES VIEW THEMSELVES?
WHY DO YOU THINK THE TWELVE TRIBES ARE STRUGGLING SO MUCH WHEN GOD GAVE THEM THE BLESSING OF THE PROMISED LAND?
WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER ABOUT CALEB FROM THE BOOK OF JOSHUA?

A TECHNICAL QUESTION:

HOW DO YOU EXPLAIN THE FACT THAT JDG 1:10 INDICATES THAT CALEB KILLED THE SONS OF ANAK WHEN JDG 1:20 AND JDG 15:14 SAYS THAT THEY WERE EXPELLED FROM THE LAND?

MEMORY VERSE: JUDGES 17:6